I'm from the south. I have a huge family and they span across several states. I have so many family members that I still meet new cousins every year. We can't even have family reunions because putting that many of us in a building is a fire hazard. When I tell people how big my family is, they're astounded. Most people look at family gatherings as a chore. They can't stand to be around a few family members for a few hours and I just don't understand that. I want to spend so much time with my family that my outlook on family life is "the bigger, the better!" Big families offer so much to each other that some people don't understand. So this is a huge thank you to big families everywhere!
Dear loud, crazy, hilarious, and obnoxious people I got stuck being related to,
Thank you all for always disciplining me like your own child.
With so many of us, mom and dad couldn't always have an eye on me. Aunts, uncles, grandparents, great aunts and uncles, and older cousins were all there to tell me when to stop doing what I was doing and then give me a spanking when I did it anyways. If it hadn't been for all the people making sure I was behaving, I probably would have turned out much worse.
Thank you all for being brutally honest.
A big family means no secrets. Everyone knows your business and has no problem sticking their noses into it. So when I was acting stupid over a guy or started partying a little too hard my freshman year of college, my family had my back. Y'all were the first to tell me I was being childish and had the proudest "I told you so!" when I got myself in a sticky situation. I wouldn't have learned a single lesson if y'all hadn't been there to teach it to me.
Thank you all for being my support system.
I can always count on y'all to back me up when I want something in life. Whether it was when I was deciding on a college, choosing a major, or applying for jobs, y'all were there to congratulate me on my success or build me back up after I got knocked down. I would still be working that awful retail job if y'all hadn't encouraged me to send in that two-weeks notice I had written months before.
Thank you all for loving me unconditionally.
There's a bunch of us and we all have our flaws. I know I'm way too overdramatic and always say the wrong thing but my family has loved me in spite of everything I do wrong. Will they make fun of my flaws? Sure. But that's how I know they love me. So thanks for always seeing the good in me.
Thank you all for having a sense of humor.
Whether we're sitting around the barbecue with nothing to talk about or sitting in a hospital waiting for good news, y'all can always make each other laugh. Big families hate silence because that usually means something bad happened. We constantly need to be smiling and laughing in each other's presence. Y'all are the first to tell an embarrassing story from your childhood and the loudest laughs when those stories are finished. I have never had a dull moment in my big family and I thank each and every one of you for that.
I could never imagine living my life without my big family in it. Y'all will always be my rock and I will always go to you for help, a hug, and some laughs.
Sincerely,
Your Favorite Relative
